user
Below is an instruction that describes a task, paired with an input that provides further context. Write a response that appropriately completes the request.

### Instruction:
Identify the literary device used in the phrase below.

### Input:
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times"

### Response:
assistant
The phrase "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" is an example of parallelism. Parallelism is a literary device used to create a rhetorical effect by repeating similar structures or words to highlight a comparison or contrast.